I wish to be a frivolous guest in Wuling

The rain in southern Xinjiang always comes suddenly, as if someone has poured a bucket of old memories on the sky, making the sky and the earth hazy.

Perhaps due to their ancestral martial arts skills, the children of the Fang family have always preferred this wet sunlight.

It seemed that amidst the sound of the drizzle, the soul-burning and life-burning skills had become lighter.

Fang Ci stood in the corridor, his eyes passing through the rain and falling on the drunken figure in the depths of the courtyard.

The young man raised his sword and startled three amphibious birds, but the sword's edge had a bit of his usual laziness.

Fang Che hummed a tuneless little song. The rain hit his shoulders, soaking his crimson purple uniform, but he didn't care at all.

"The prince has drunk too much again." The maid behind him whispered softly, her tone revealing a habitual indulgence.

People in southern Xinjiang have long been accustomed to the absurdity of their young master. After all, this young master can participate in military and political discussions while drunk and dares to doze off during the ancestral worship ceremony.

Fang Ci said steadily, "The wrist is three points lower."

The sword's momentum stagnated.

Fang Che turned around and looked back, a trace of guilt on his face, just like the look on his face when he was a child and knocked over the teacup on the table and was caught.

"Sister."

The young man called her, his voice slightly raised, with his usual clear tone: "Aren't you going to inspect the salt road?"

"If I had really gone, how would I have known that your Southern Border sword style would have inherited the legacy of Taibai?" Fang Ci's eyes passed over the rouge marks on his collar: "Did you still enjoy the new music from Zuixianlou last night?"

Fang Che kicked the stone away from his feet and spoke briskly, as if he were discussing today's snack: "The immortal poet drinks and wields a sword. That sounds about right."

He wiped the rain from his face and said, "The sword moves at will. That's the highest level of swordsmanship."

Fang Ci didn't respond.

After a long moment, he raised his hand and straightened the boy's disheveled collar: "It's okay to be silly, but don't joke with your body. You're so wet, go change your clothes."

She remembered that when Fang Che was fourteen, he was denounced by the elder officials of the palace as "unfit for the responsibility." She barged into the meeting hall and coldly said, "Since that's the case, why don't you all practice the forbidden technique yourself?"

From then on, no one dared to say a word against Fang Che to his face.

Now, her brother is acting so absurdly and with such confidence, and so indulgently.

The young man nodded meekly, his eyelashes drooping, but as if intoxicated, he asked, "Sister, what's the point of learning how to govern a country if I'm destined to die before thirty? It's better to leave more children. With more bloodlines, there will always be someone who can live past forty."

As Fang Ci's knuckles tightened slightly, the sound of rain outside the eaves suddenly became very distant.

She only stared at her younger brother who had been protected under her wings since childhood, but now he was like a seemingly crooked tree with scattered branches and leaves, but deep roots.

In the rain, the young man's eyes were blurry with drunkenness, but he was more clear-headed than anyone else in losing himself.

The fate of the Southern King does not depend on heaven or luck, but on the four words "Fiery Life Seal of Heaven".

Using the destiny as a guide, he guarded the city gates thousands of miles away in the southern border.

She finally spoke in a low voice: "Jing Yuan told you?"

Fang Che didn't answer, but only looked up at her. The young man smiled, raindrops trickling down his forehead, mingling with the scent of alcohol and his still youthful immaturity. "He said that during the years when the grassland cavalry broke through the pass, three consecutive Southern Kings of the Fang family didn't live past their thirties."

He was his father's only son, and the Khan to the south was a once-in-a-century hero on the grasslands.

The southern border city was in turmoil. It was unlikely that he would live past thirty.

Raindrops fell on the bluestone slabs and broke into smaller droplets. Fang Ci suddenly thought of the row of ebony tablets in the ancestral hall. His great-grandfather was thirty-nine, and his grandfather was twenty-seven, as if being pulled by invisible threads towards their destined end.

The first Southern King died at the age of forty, like a curse, engraved in the Fang family's bloodline.

Over the past hundred years, few Southern Kings lived past forty.

So, rumors started spreading.

Some people said that it was a punishment from heaven, the retribution for the first Southern King's treason and murder of his master.

Some people also said that it was fate, a shackle destined to hang over the Fang family's heads.

Over time, even the Fang family themselves believed it, and the status of the Southern Xinjiang Xiao family in the Southern Palace continued to rise. This bloodline was said to be the descendant of the royal family of the previous dynasty, even though the Xiao family tree had long been blurred.

After all, most of the time, what people seek is "peace of mind" rather than "the truth."

As a result, the Xiao family was entrusted with an important task in southern Xinjiang. The children of the Xiao family and the children of the Fang family studied together, learning etiquette and literature, for the peace of mind of the Fang family.

Then one day, Fang Ci's childhood sweetheart, the one who had studied with her since they were little, and whose intelligence had been crushed on the ground, told her brother: "There is no curse. When the smoke of war rises on the grassland, the bloodline of the Fang family will be ignited as a beacon."

Xiao Jingyuan said that when the grassland is strong, the King of the South will not live long.

And Fang Che accepted all of this calmly.

Fang Ci saw all of this.

She indulged her younger brother.

Let him be absurd, let him talk while drunk, let him focus on martial arts and ignore government affairs.

Fang Che's absurdity is measured, and his indulgence has limits. Fang Ci looks through his cynical exterior and sees a young man who has long seen through life and death, but insists on chewing up and swallowing his fate.

Her brother was not ridiculous at all, he was clearly too smart.

The doomed situation of death was like an invisible net that had been quietly spread out since the day Fang Che was born, and it was getting tighter and tighter.

Fang Ci stood outside the net, holding power, yet unable to tear even a single thread. For the first time, she experienced the feeling of powerlessness.

So she spoke, her voice soft and gentle: "If Ah Che doesn't want to care, then don't care."

The young man's face brightened when he heard that, his eyes suddenly brightened, and the corners of his mouth curved up in a curve that she was very familiar with, cunning and flattering.

That smile suddenly overlapped with the old memories.

The child who staggered after her skirt back then, when he first raised the wooden sword that was taller than him, smiled at her with his head raised, his smile brighter than the sunshine of spring.

By the time she said this, Fang Ci had already carefully unpacked the heavy burden. The beacon fires at the southern border city gates, the military orders at the military case, those suffocating responsibilities, she had originally planned to slowly unpack them and pass them on to the people around her who could use them.

But things in this world don't always go as we wish.

The sixteen tribes of the grasslands were in chaos, and her father was seriously ill. When a letter of help from southern Xinjiang reached the north, her marriage became the most important chip on the scale.

A marriage certificate was promised to the son of a powerful official in the north as a token of the alliance.

On the day of the alliance, Fang Ci was stunned for a long while. When his fingertips brushed across the marriage certificate, he was still thinking of the young man lying drunk under the tree, his clothes stained with wine, and trying to snatch her round fan.

There are far from enough trustworthy people around Fang Che.

And Fang Che misunderstood her silence.

The boy just thought she didn't like the engagement and felt wronged and unwilling.

Then, the young man stood before her solemnly, the candlelight flickering in his pupils. "It's just a marriage certificate. The three northern states have changed hands four times in the past two years. Who knows who will sit there tomorrow, human or ghost?"

The young man paused, his tone as firm as if Xiao Jingyuan was omnipotent: "Jingyuan said that when the time comes, we can find any excuse to cancel it. This kind of political marriage is easy to change."

That night, the young man looked at her with a burning gaze and said, "Sister, marry whoever you want to marry."

After that, Fang Ci's marriage, just as Xiao Jingyuan said, changed again and again.

On the north side of the city wall, today it belongs to Li, and tomorrow it will belong to Zhao.

Her father, the king, took advantage of the situation and repeatedly delayed and amended the marriage contract. It wasn't that Southern Xinjiang had broken its promise, but that the world was without a ruler.

This marriage became the most respectable delaying tactic in southern Xinjiang.

In the past few years, Xiao Jingyuan found two skills among the numerous fragments, secret files, and forbidden records in the Southern Palace, which could eliminate the backlash of "Blazing Life Sealing Heaven" itself.

One is the national medical book "Bodhi Enlightenment", and the other is the scroll "Mingjing Feitai" from the previous dynasty.

They dared not touch the Book of State Protection. For anyone outside the royal family to study the Book of State Protection was to overstep their bounds, to plot treason, and to give others an advantage.

They were only chasing after a fragment of a verse, and spent huge amounts of manpower and material resources to search for the book left by the previous dynasty.

They spent two whole years searching for a copy of "A Bright Mirror Is Not a Stage".

But this was not enough. They needed someone who was qualified to master this technique and could stabilize Fang Che's life at the critical moment.

Throughout southern Xinjiang, the royal guards and military generals were tested, but none of them could perform this technique.

"A Bright Mirror Is Not a Platform" emphasizes "a clear mind and a focused spirit". It is difficult for anyone without extraordinary talent to even get started.

So the rumors started again.

Some people say that the Xiao family’s bloodline is the same as that of the royal family of the previous dynasty. It’s hard to say, but the Xiao family may be the one.

The person with the highest attainments in martial arts in the Xiao family is Xiao Jingyuan's younger brother.

The young man who was usually taciturn and rarely showed up at banquets in the mansion actually agreed to this matter in front of all the elders.

It was uncharacteristic of him, but Fang Ci did not suspect anything, because he was Jing Yuan's biological brother.

Until the war started.

The first time, at Tianying Pass, the Grassland Eagle Tribe launched a surprise attack. Fang Che came out of the pass alone, and Xiao Jingxiu couldn't find anyone.

The second time, outside Longyao Pass, the food supply route to southern Xinjiang was cut off, Fang Che used forbidden techniques, Xiao Jingxiu, and could not find anyone.

Every time when Xiao Jingxiu was needed, he could never find anyone.

It was a coincidence at first, then it became strange.

In the end, Fang Ci understood that it was a premeditated plan.

A clear, cold, and hidden hostility came from Xiao Jingxiu and pointed directly at Fang Che.

The army's morale gradually boiled over, like a prairie fire.

One veteran threw his sword to the ground in public, the sound like tearing silk: "The prince risked his life to defend the pass, and Xiao Jingxiu didn't even dare to go to the battlefield! If he is not punished, wouldn't it be advocating a fear of fighting? We disdain to be with cowards!"

Xiao Jingyuan ran between the military tent and the palace, trying to suppress the public anger and protect his brother, which made him extremely anxious.

As a last resort, he began to practice "The Mirror Is Not a Platform".

He is the future commander-in-chief of Southern Xinjiang. He should not and does not need to touch that kind of "healing technique".

That's the job of doctors and sorcerers. Commander, it's time to learn the martial arts manual.

The father looked at it, sighed, and said, "The Xiao family has made great contributions to Southern Xinjiang. We must not let their loyalty and goodness be discouraged. Your father also took the knife for me. For his sake, let it go."

In the end, the king did not pursue the matter, and Xiao Jingxiu lied to Fang Che about burning his life.

With a "forget it" cry, only the Fang family gave up.

Xiao Jingyuan's practice of "Ming Jing Fei Tai" made Xiao Jingxiu even more aggressive.

He no longer hides.

In the martial arts arena, he sneered in public: "If the prince is really capable, why would he risk his life to win the battle?"

During the military meeting, he said coldly: "If the Southern Frontier is only supported by a short-lived ghost, it is better to surrender to the North as soon as possible and save the people."

Every word is like a knife, every sentence pierces the heart.

But that guy is Uncle Xiao’s biological son and Jingyuan’s biological brother.

Time and again, my father made big things small and small things disappear for the sake of the Xiao family.

If we let things go, once they start to get out of control, it will be too late to reverse the situation.

Xiao Jingxiu changed the source of the water, and nearly a hundred people in the palace almost lost their lives.

Xiao Jingxiu looked calm as usual, and didn't even bother to explain that it was a "misunderstanding".

The elders of the tribe were furious: "If this beast is not eliminated, there will be no peace in southern Xinjiang!"

The father sitting in the high position looked gloomy and was in a dilemma again.

The king's eyes swept across the commotion in the hall and finally landed on her.

Fang Ci stood at the bottom of the steps, lowered her eyes and said nothing. She should have spoken, she should have said "behead", she should have given an explanation to those hundred lives.

But when she looked at Jamel Xiao kneeling in front of the palace, she couldn't harden her heart: "Father..."

She heard her own voice settle amidst the clashing in the hall: "Spare his life. Xiao Jingxiu, in this lifetime, you are not allowed to set foot in Southern Xinjiang again."

That was the decision Fang Ci regretted most in his life.

If it weren't for her momentary change of mind, there wouldn't have been those 100,000 bones in southern Xinjiang, and there wouldn't have been those thousands of miles of scorched earth.

When he saw Xiao Jingxiu again, Fang Ci could no longer touch him.

The young man stood beneath the royal banner, his brocade robe and jade belt, his brows and eyes as cold as ever. Those eyes, as deep as ancient wells, reflected neither the light of heaven nor the light of human hearts.

Behind him were the nobles who ruled Yunzhong and competed with the emperor.

Xiao Jingxiu now has a bigger backer behind him.

Xiao Jingxiu's new master's surname is Qin, the Qin of the current royal family. That was Fang Ci's last marriage partner.

The imperial court was in decline, the grasslands were watching closely, and southern Xinjiang inevitably had to take sides.

Thus, her engagement became the position of Southern Xinjiang.

That night, the moonlight was like frost.

Xiao Jingyuan came to her courtyard, looked at her with complicated eyes, and after a long time, he just sighed: "This time, your engagement cannot be broken by us in Nanjiang."

King Xiang of Qin Shu controlled the nine states of Yunzhong, had elite troops and sufficient food, and the southern border was unable to offend him or compete with him.

But in this deadlock, Fang Che changed.

For the first time ever, Fang Che began to take the initiative to read military books, inquire in detail about the terrain and hydrology of the passes, and even redraw the defense map of southern Xinjiang with his own hands, circling and annotating it with a red pen, meticulously.

Fang Ci saw it, and she asked Jamel Xiao: "Why did he suddenly change his personality?"

The instigator leaned against the porch pillar and spread his hands leisurely. "I asked him if he wanted to cancel the engagement. He said he did. It's that simple."

Fang Che started to work hard, but Bei Mian's attitude became more and more ambiguous.

On the one hand, Qin Shu vigorously supported Southern Xinjiang. On the other hand, Qin Shu was even more taboo than she was about mentioning this political marriage.

Whenever someone mentioned the engagement, Qin Shu would never look happy.

The human heart is like the tide, always rebellious.

The more people avoid talking about something, the easier it is to take root in your heart.

This time, Fang Ci actually developed a curiosity about the person he had arranged to marry, whom he had never met before.

She calmly sent someone to investigate.

The reports all said that His Royal Highness, Prince Xiang, was a young and virtuous man, untainted by the vulgarities of cosmetics. He was a modest gentleman, with measured conduct, like a pine or cypress standing in the wind.

Combined with the elegant appearance in the painting, her marriage partner is like a sword that is not stained by dust, cold but sharp.

This kind of person, without a single flaw to be found, seemed impeccable. Or perhaps, everyone only saw the side of him that they were willing to show?

Her heart was slightly moved, but she did not show it, and was as calm as yesterday.

Qin Shu took good care of southern Xinjiang.

Food, military equipment, and ironware were continuously transported across the clouds; the southern border caravans headed north with unimpeded access.

Rumors began to spread among the people. In the teahouses in the market, wine flags were hung at an angle, with words saying "gold and jade wedlock, dragon and phoenix bring good luck" or "Southern pearls and northern jade, a match made in heaven".

This marriage became a perfect match that people envied.

Even among the southern border troops, laughter began to rise.

A general laughed and teased her: Has the princess prepared her makeup?

The generals laughed.

For the first time ever, Fang Ci did not refute it.

She knew in her heart that if Southern Xinjiang had to choose someone to form a marriage alliance with, Qin Shu was a rare talent, one in a million. In terms of strategic advantage, Southern Xinjiang had Yunzhong as its backing, making it a strong frontier.

Even if they are not in love, they are still a good match.

Compared to her indifference, Qin Shu seemed to be disturbed by these rumors.

Perhaps he noticed her subtle affection, so after a banquet, Qin Shu left her alone in the waterside pavilion.

Moonlight drifted across the lake as the young prince poured wine from a jug. His movements were calm, but his tone was blunt and almost cold: "Princess, don't overthink it. This marriage wasn't something I sought, but it was your father who insisted on facilitating it. I accepted it simply to appease the old prince."

He raised his eyes, his gaze as cold and clear as the reflection of snow in a deep pool. "I know the princess has always disliked marriages, and has no such intentions. This prince needs an ally, a stable rear. As long as the Southern Court holds its ground, this prince will treat the Southern Frontier well."

At this point, Qin Shu paused. "A marriage contract is nothing more than ink on paper. The people from Southern Xinjiang have repeatedly come to Yunzhong to raise this matter, making it very difficult for me to handle it. I hope this matter will remain unspoken with the princess."

Her marriage partner wishes that everyone would tacitly agree to never mention the marriage again.

Fallen flowers have no intention of following the flowing water, and Fang Ci is not the kind of person who would cling to others.

Since he was unwilling, she let it go.

That night when she returned home, she burned the portrait on her desk.

The flames rolled up, illuminating her eyes with clarity.

Everything returned to its original state, but it was completely different.

Soon after, Xiao Jingyuan officially took over the military and political affairs of southern Xinjiang, and was responsible for managing the army, allocating grain and deploying defenses, and rectifying the administration of officials.

The balance began to tilt.

Hundreds of battles, large and small, were fought along the border, each one meticulously planned and measured, with measured advances and retreats. He sought not a sudden victory, but a steady hold. He did not risk his life, but accumulated small victories into a larger one.

Southern Xinjiang no longer relies on one person's life to fill the pass, but relies on food routes, scouts, ambushes, and geographical advantages to weave an impenetrable network.

Fang Che, however, never used his life essence again. He still went into battle, still charged, still took the enemy's heads amidst thousands of enemies, but he no longer led the formation with blood or exchanged his life for time.

And that foreign hero who had roamed the grasslands for more than forty years and made two generations of southern kings tremble in fear was now over sixty years old, with white hair.

He could still ride a horse and bend a bow, but his tribe quietly split behind him, becoming alienated and embroiled in internal strife. His opponent was a young, calm, and capable fighter who could even "drag him into his coffin."

On the grassland, the offensive and defensive situation quietly reversed.

Fang Ci stood on the city wall, looking at the wolf smoke gradually extinguishing on the distant grassland, and breathed a long sigh of relief.

She realized that with Jing Yuan around, A Che might not have to follow the old path of his predecessors.

The young man who was once suffocated by the "Fiery Life Sealing Heaven" can now ride a horse in the spring, sing drunkenly, and mingle with soldiers in the martial arts field.

The light in the boy's eyes was no longer the ashes before death, but a living, hot light.

Perhaps, her brother could live a healthy and old life like an ordinary warrior.

Things began to change in the thirteenth year of Jiasui.

That year, in the northern commander's city, white flags were like snow, and the whole city was in mourning.

The only heir of the Lu family in Western Xinjiang died in a battle with the Di people outside the Great Wall.

The coffin was transported back from outside the Great Wall, and the soul flags fluttered like crying for thousands of miles. However, Fang Ci learned from Xiao Jingyuan's information that there were only clothes in the coffin.

The Lu family, for the second time, couldn’t even collect the corpse.

King Lu Xingde of the West held the coffin and wept bitterly. The pillar of the Western Frontier who had once single-handedly suppressed the enemy and made the Hu people dare not peek east for ten years, now had disheveled white hair, a body hunched like a rotten wood, and aged as if he had aged overnight.

Among the three kings, Fang Che is the only one left in Southern Xinjiang.

Fang Ci stood in the corridor, listening to the whimpering of the spirit flag as the north wind blew through it, his fingertips feeling cold.

In a trance, she asked Jamel Xiao: "Will there be a day...we will also bear the coffin for A Che?"

The young man stood beside her, his brows calm and his voice gentle, "I am here."

These two short words carry a weight of over a thousand pounds.

That year, the situation changed suddenly.

Qin Shu led his army north, their cavalry trampling the Golden Pavilion. Before the imperial court could issue its final edict, the throne had already been reclaimed. His Highness, the former Prince Xiang, ascended the throne, proclaiming himself emperor and changing his title and reign.

Her marriage partner became the emperor.

The southern border changed from an "old ally" to a "vassal state"; from a "reliable friend" to a "threat to be detected".

Qin Shu began to take action against the old ministers who followed Long.

The first target of the knife was the extinct Lu family in Western Xinjiang.

It seems like just yesterday when the old prince of Western Xinjiang passed away. On the day when his coffin was carried out of the city, his distant relatives Qin served as bearers of the coffin. People talked about it with great relish, and the story of the harmonious relationship between the monarch and his ministers is still fresh in our ears.

Now, the swords are clanging.

When creatures of their own kind feel sympathy for one another, even the fox mourns when a rabbit dies.

Xiao Jingyuan entered the mansion overnight and pushed a secret letter to her desk. He said in a low voice: "Princess, joining the north to help the west is our last chance. If the Lu family falls, the next one will be Southern Xinjiang."

But Qin Shu offered a higher price.

Qin Shu officially put the marriage that had been put on hold for years on the agenda, sending an envoy with a special imperial seal, a golden book, and a jade envelope, along with all the necessary etiquette.

Everyone in southern Xinjiang knows that this is a gamble.

Even if they could unite the remnants of the Western Frontier and the old allies of the Northern Prefecture, the three prefectures might not be able to shake Qin Shu.

By forming an alliance with such a person, southern Xinjiang may be able to gain a hundred years of respite.

In the end, Fang Che accepted Qin Shu's enticement, and three days later, the declaration of war on Xiao Jingyuan's case was replaced with a marriage certificate.

Seven days later, Qin Shuming issued an edict to the world, enthroning the queen.

At the same time, on the battlefield in Western Xinjiang, the Lu family's troops burned themselves to death in their tent.

The thirty-six cities in the Western Frontier, the century-old foundation of the Lu family, collapsed like sand and turned into dust.

The centuries-old royal family of Western Frontier was reduced to a line of ink in the history books.

But they ultimately misjudged Qin Shu.

That is not a good man, but a precisely run, heartless political machine.

In the past, her father used marriage to balance the situation and buy a respite for southern Xinjiang.

Now, Qin Shu used marriage to balance the war situation and trapped Southern Xinjiang in the center of the chessboard.

In the imperial city, Qin Shu gave Fang Ci everything he could give or confer.

She holds the golden book and jade seal, and is in sole control of the six palaces. The inner treasury is under her control. She is the undisputed master of the six palaces, and her power is rare since the founding of the country.

But outside the imperial city, southern Xinjiang was being eroded inch by inch.

Qin Shu placed his trusted aides in the Nanfu government office on the pretext of "rectifying border affairs" and stripped Fang Che of his military power.

The grain route was controlled, the salt and iron were locked, and Southern Xinjiang was destined to become the next Western Xinjiang in Qin Shu's hands.

To the north of the southern border, the royal army was approaching, approaching the city, with flags covering the sun.

South of the southern border, the southern barbarians who had been dormant for many years took advantage of the situation and rose up. One hundred thousand of their troops crossed the Cangwu Ridge and headed straight for Tianying Pass.

Fang Ci was in the palace, and the news he received became heavier day by day.

There was actually a rumor in the southern Xinjiang army that "we should just let the foreigners in."

"We're going to die anyway, so it's better to let the barbarians break in first than to be skinned alive by the Imperial City!"

There is disunity within and powerful enemies outside. In the southern border, there are enemies both on the front and on the back.

Fang Ci could no longer interfere with all this.

She was trapped in this golden cage, holding the highest power in the world, but she could not save her own family.

Only Jamel Xiao was carrying it.

He alone took the blame for "treason" and admitted that he "colluded with barbarians and plotted to secede." Qin Shu took advantage of the situation and issued an edict, and in the name of "the royal army punishing the criminals," he led his troops straight in and took over the defense of southern Xinjiang.

Xiao Jingyuan and Qin Shu reached a peace agreement.

The Fang family gave up their hereditary succession, retained the title of King Fang Che, no longer controlled the Southern Army, but continued to be in charge of the civil affairs of Southern Xinjiang.

After the peace agreement was reached, the royal army marched south, and outside the city of Shule, the main force of the barbarians was caught off guard.

The grassland cavalry was completely defeated, a victory unseen in a century, shocking the world.

In the eyes of the people, the royal army was a savior who killed the "scum" who colluded with foreign races, drove out the barbarians, and restored peace to southern Xinjiang.

The nine states and thirty counties in the southern region decorated their houses with lanterns and streamers to express their gratitude to the emperor for his wisdom.

But in the eyes of countless Southern Army soldiers, the imperial court had long known about the movements of the barbarians, but deliberately forced the Southern Army to defend a desperate situation, used foreign races, and forced the Southern Army commander to death.

The seeds of hatred are quietly planted.

What Fang Che signed with his toothpick was not a peace agreement, but a truce that could collapse at any time.

The person who easily broke this fragile peace was Xiao Jingxiu, whom Fang Ci let go because of a momentary change of mind.

He believed that it was the Fang family that put his brother in jail so that the Fang family would not be destroyed like the Lu family.

He determined that the Fang family was the murderer.

Xiao Jingxiu's dissatisfaction with Southern Xinjiang reached its peak.

He targeted southern Xinjiang without concealing his intentions or leaving any room for maneuver.

That was the Taijian Division that supervised all officials. At Xiao Jingxiu's suggestion, they heard the rumor and reported it to the court.

Today, he impeached the Southern Army general for "secretly keeping military tokens", tomorrow he reported the Southern Army general for "secretly communicating with old subordinates", and the day after tomorrow he "discovered" that the accounts of the Southern Xinjiang granary contained "financial resources for treason".

Every now and then, a general of the Southern Army was arrested and brought to the capital, and was directly imprisoned without going through the three courts.

Some people could not endure the torture and confessed to "rebellion"; some people refused to surrender and their bodies were exposed in Dongshi; and more people died suddenly during the escort.

Treason became the universal crime.

The emperor on the dragon throne just watched his confidants causing chaos and just stood by and watched.

Qin Shu knew exactly what Xiao Jingxiu had done, but he just acquiesced and condoned it.

In southern Xinjiang, someone really rebelled.

Fang Che couldn't hold it down. Being able to hold himself down was already his limit.

Han Chenglie could no longer hold back, and his own personal soldiers began to secretly collude with each other.

No one can control it.

If this vengeance is not avenged, there will be no peace in southern Xinjiang. If this debt is not repaid, where will the heroic spirit rest?

Southern Xinjiang is like a pot of oil heated to boiling point. Just a spark will turn it into a sea of ​​fire.

But if Southern Xinjiang really had the strength to fight, Xiao Jingyuan would have fought long ago.

The current emperor, apart from the two years of civil governance at the beginning of the country when he lived in harmony with the people, the rest of his achievements were all military.

It can’t be stopped in the north, it can’t be stopped in the west, and naturally it can’t be stopped in the south either.

Using only a small corner of the south to counter the power of the entire country, even the first Southern King, who was the best martial artist of the time during the founding years, could not do it.

Finally, on a rainy night.

Fang Che, alone with a sword, broke into the heavily guarded Xizhao City and killed his way into the high walls of the Anxi Jiedu Mansion.

A man, a sword, and a black robe came walking in the rain.

In the rain, the fire of life is not extinguished, and there seems to be the shadow of Shura demanding life.

Where the knife flashed, blood splattered on the red gate.

Asura Dharma image, blazing red night sky.

At dawn, the Anxi Jiedu Mansion was littered with corpses, and Xiao Jingxiu was powerless to save the situation.

The drizzle, mixed with the smell of rusty blood, fell silently on the top of Xizhao City.

The three words "Assassination of Xiao" were recorded in history and listed as the first of the three major cases of the founding of the country.

The whole world was shaken and the whole country was in an uproar. The emperor investigated the case and tens of thousands of people were implicated.

His younger brother gave up his title, killed the Heavenly Official, and was wanted by the whole world.

One marriage, southern Xinjiang is doomed.

And Fang Ci was trapped in the imperial land of Dragon City.

Qin Shu would kill those officials who took advantage of the rebellion in southern Xinjiang to attack her, and she didn't even mind her interfering in state affairs.

In the imperial city, Fang Ci was still dressed in fine clothes and fed with delicious food, respected by everyone, with palace maids kneeling to greet her and officials making way for her. Even Qin Shu was very polite when he met her.

In the streets and alleys, the emperor and empress's "sea of ​​hatred and love" were compiled into a vernacular by storytellers and spread throughout the country.

Some people say that the queen once blocked an arrow for the emperor, some say that the emperor refused to take in six concubines for her, and some even say that the chaos in southern Xinjiang was nothing more than a love affair between the emperor and the queen. Their anger was for their beloved, and their hatred tore the mountains and rivers apart.

Only the parties involved know - they are all rumors.

Fang Ci couldn't help but sneer in his heart: Is there really someone in this world who would be so desperate as to take the blame for Qin Shu?

At the palace banquet, after three rounds of wine, she asked the other party jokingly while drunk.

The emperor in front of him nodded nonchalantly, smiling lightly, not reaching his eyes: "Yes."

Fang Ci was slightly startled, she was surprised by the other party's answer.

This person treats people's hearts as chess pieces and friendship as bargaining chips. Who is worthy of protecting such a person with his life?

She concealed her surprise and chuckled softly, saying sarcastically, "Better to believe that His Majesty truly rejected all six concubines for me."

The emperor's eyes fell on her, as if he saw through her, yet seemed indifferent: "It's okay if the queen believes it."

The tone didn't sound like love words, but rather like almsgiving. To him, it made no difference whether it was true or false.

Fang Ci narrowed her eyes. Somehow, she suddenly recalled some old things. At that time, Yunzhong and Nanjiang had just formed an alliance, and the army was rumored to have heard that Prince Xiang had someone in his heart and was only waiting for the princess.

Only she knew that Qin Shu had found her overnight and offered her a large reward to ask her to stop spreading these things in Southern Xinjiang.

Qin Shu did resist the marriage.

She vaguely realized that maybe there really was someone.

Someone once blocked the arrow for Qin Shu, but it was not her.

Qin Shu once refused to accept six concubines for one person, but it was not her.

There has never been love between them, only calculations and checks and balances, silence and confrontation.

Seeing her silence, Qin Shu said leisurely, "Isn't that strange? There are countless people who would die for me if I sat in your position."

He spoke in a calm tone, as if stating a very common fact: people are willing to die for power and profit, just as plants turn to the sun, which is natural.

Fang Ci didn't look at him, but only looked at the remaining wine in the cup, which reflected his blurry reflection.

After a long while, she suddenly asked, like a thin blade cutting through the night:

"Is she dead?"

Qin Shu was silent.

In the first episode, this emperor who was well-versed in the world and whose words were always in his mouth, could not respond to her words.

Fang Ci paused. She didn't come to talk to Qin Shu, she came to make a deal, and now, she seemed to have found a way.

Her voice was extremely low, like snow falling on the edge of a sword: "The Xiao family of Yinshu has a forbidden technique that can traverse life and death and reverse yin and yang."

The palace lantern cast a pale yellow halo on her face. "The relationship between the Fang family and Yin Shu is intricate and intricate, not something outsiders can understand. Let Fang Che go, I can help you."

There was still no emotion in Qin Shu's eyes, as if the forbidden technique she mentioned that could change life and death was just a ridiculous joke.

The golden dragon thread on the dragon robe shone with a cold light. Qin Shu said in a cold and indifferent tone: "That is evil magic."

He spoke very calmly, as if he had known this technique for a long time.

So calm as if... he had used this technique before.

Fang Ci's mind sank. She suddenly remembered that before Qin Shu ascended the throne, it was said in Yunzhong that the Western Frontier martial arts were contaminated by evil and were eventually suppressed by Qin Shu.

The official in charge of the case had his entire clan exterminated, and all those involved died suddenly. The Lu family in Western Xinjiang kept the matter a secret.

Now that I think about it...

A guess so bold as to be almost absurd popped into her mind.

She stared at Qin Shu: "You have tried it, you have used plastic life a long time ago."

Qin Shu's eyes moved slightly.

Fang Ci's voice trembled slightly: "Xijiang Kung Fu... Lu Xiyun? He was attacked by the backlash."

Her breath hitched: "He is not in the North——"

Qin Shu interrupted him, still saying the same thing: "That's evil magic."

Qin Shu was silent for a long time, so long that Fang Ci thought he would never speak again.

Finally, he spoke, his voice so soft it sounded like a sigh: "I scared him, so he won't come back."

The tone didn't sound like he was talking about a dead person.

Fang Ci was stunned. Her throat tightened slightly, and a chill rose in her. "Qin Shu, be more normal. Lu Xiyun died in battle in the northern border."

In return, the person in front of me suddenly raised his eyes.

The look in his eyes was extremely cold, giving people chills.

Qin Shu's tone was terrifyingly calm: "Normal, what's the point?"

This was enough to silence all the ministers, but Fang Ci became angry.

The anger and hatred that had been suppressed for so long suddenly surged up.

She raised her voice in anger, confronting him: "Then it is useful that you caused the Lu family to be destroyed?! Qin Shu, are you a beast?!"

Qin Shu, however, remained calm and composed. He chuckled softly, his laughter showing neither joy nor anger: "Fang Ci, if you hate me, then find a way to kill me."

He raised his eyes, his gaze deep: "Kill me, and you will have the final say in this world."

Fang Ci gritted his teeth - hadn't she tried it before?

She has tried it thousands of times in this Imperial City.

She tried assassinations, poisoning, fire, and even witchcraft, but each time, Qin Shu seemed to have anticipated it and with a slight flick, the murderous intent disappeared.

There were no flaws around him, and everything seemed like a carefully arranged chess piece.

This is a political machine that is so sophisticated that it is suffocating.

Even someone like Jing Yuan fell into his hands. How could she, a queen imprisoned in the deep palace, win?

So, she was patient, suppressed her hatred, sat in front of Qin Shu with a submissive attitude, and spoke softly to him, trying to buy a way for Fang Che to survive.

She understood Qin Shu's way of thinking.

Qin Shu naturally wouldn't agree to her request for no reason. To be more precise, Qin Shu wouldn't help anyone for no reason.

But as long as she can offer the right price, nothing is off-limits.

In Qin Shu's eyes, everything in the world can be traded, including human life.

She took a deep breath and said in a steady voice, "Let A Che go. I will help you deal with the harem affairs. Otherwise, you will be deposed as queen."

She raised her eyes and looked directly at him. "Find a new partner, appease the old subordinates in Southern Xinjiang, and silence the gossips in the court. This will be equally troublesome for Your Majesty, won't it?"

The hall was silent for a moment.

Qin Shu held the cup and drank the wine slowly and leisurely.

He put down his cup, his tone as calm as if he were discussing an ordinary government matter:

"Don't let Fang Che appear in my sight again."

Fang Ci knew that this was a concession.

Xiao Jingxiu is dead. As long as Qin Shu no longer personally oversees Fang Che's case, those court officials who want to take advantage of the opportunity to step on her will never dare to confront her head-on.

After dealing with Qin Shu, Fang Ci then sent a large number of manpower to investigate Fang Che's whereabouts.

The spies of the canal transport, post roads, and border posts were spread out like flowing water, with secret letters coming one after another.

But it was like a stone sinking into the sea, with no news at all.

Sometimes she woke up in the middle of the night and all she could see was the young man covered in blood.

The young man stood in the rain, his sword was broken, but his eyes were as clear as when he was a child.

The young man looked at her and asked, "Sister... why don't you care about me?"

She got up, put on her clothes, but saw only an empty desk.

She even began to worry whether Fang Che was dead.

Too much information told him that on the night of the assassination, Fang Che broke into the Jiedu Mansion alone and was already exhausted when he escaped from the city.

Perhaps, her brother really died on that rainy night.

With wounds all over his body, he fell in some deserted corner, buried by weeds.

Until one day, Xiao Wujiu came to her with a letter, bypassing the heavy guards in the palace.

The figure in white silently crossed the nine palace walls and stood under her window.

The strange young man did not mention his name, but spoke with a carefree and unrestrained manner as he handed a letter to her.

There were no words on the envelope, only a crooked little wolf pictured on it.

That was Fang Che’s “masterpiece” from his childhood.

When Fang Che was studying in the palace in the old days, he could never sit still, but he didn't dare to be distracted under Xiao Jingyuan's eyes, so he would usually pass the time on the blank spaces of the pages.

She wasn't good at painting, but she never tired of it. When Xiao Jingyuan found out, she didn't panic, but just hid behind her, grinning and making jokes.

Fang Ci followed Xiao Wujiu and met Fang Che.

Her brother, though still young, was already emaciated, like a withered willow in autumn, which would be broken by the wind.

Fang Ci's fingertips touched the young man's bony spine, which was like touching a sword that was about to break. He was so thin that he looked unrecognizable, and even his breathing was accompanied by broken noises.

Fang Che threw himself into her arms, mumbling incoherently, taking the blame and blaming himself, yet stubbornly refusing to admit his fault:

"I'm not... acting on impulse... Xiao Jingxiu killed so many generals in Southern Xinjiang, and Qin Shu never cared... If I don't kill him, no one can control him..."

His younger brother gave up the throne and everything to drag Xiao Jingxiu to hell, but he refused to admit that this was revenge.

Fang Che's voice choked with sobs, feeling extremely aggrieved: "So many people died, why am I the only one who has to put up with them?"

The young man buried his head in her shoulder and finally burst into tears: "I know... I should do a good job on the throne. Jingyuan and I promised... But I can't do it... I'm sorry, I'm really sorry..."

Fang Ci said nothing.

She simply raised her hand and patted the boy's back very lightly, just like she did when he fell while practicing swordplay as a child.

Even if the young master got hurt while practicing swordplay, he would never cry in front of her. He would just bite his lips to show his strength, his face tense and his eyes red. Fang Ci thought, maybe she was a little fierce, or maybe Jingyuan was better at coaxing children. Every time, she would just helplessly push Fang Che into the study. When she turned around, she would hear a "wa" of sobbing behind her, and then it would be Xiao Jingyuan's turn to feel helpless.

Fang Che always habitually acted strong in front of her, as if only by doing so could he stand in front of her instead of hiding behind her.

But now, the boy curled up in her arms, skinny and bony, crying bitterly.

Fang Che is no longer trying to be tough, but he is even more pitiful than before.

She just coaxed him patiently: "It's okay."

Fang Ci patted his back gently, as if comforting a child who had a nightmare.

She said, "Our Fang family doesn't want this throne anymore."

Fang Ci hugged the boy tighter, leaving only the most tender words: "As long as you are safe."

That winter, the rain in the imperial city fell heavily all winter, just like the rain in southern Xinjiang in the past.

The imperial physician said that his brother would not live to see New Year's Eve.

Fang Che's life force was almost burned out.

The rain washed over the palace walls and jade steps, dispelling all traces that should not be left.

The smell of medicinal herbs and intermittent coughs deep in the temple were inexplicably annoying.

When the rain stops, the world becomes new.

No one knows that in that rain, deep in the palace, the young man passed away with winter before he could see the snow.

His younger brother did not survive that winter.

---------

It’s raining again in southern Xinjiang.

The spring rain is as fine as silk, dripping down from the corners of the green tile eaves and forming a hazy atmosphere in the corridor.

Fang Ci walked out of the house.

Fang Che had been acting strangely since returning from Shuaicheng yesterday. Xiao Jingyuan and Wen Congren had collaborated, nearly getting themselves involved, and had kept Fang Che in the dark. The Black Cavalry Commander couldn't coax her into submission, so he had to drag her into the blame.

Fang Ci felt helpless. She thought, she was at most an accomplice in this matter, so why was it her turn to coax?

Fang Ci carefully leaned forward and moved to the side of the young man, with a hint of flattery in his eyes.

"Yeah, are you still angry?"

Fang Che didn't respond, but just turned his head to the other side, unwilling to look her in the eye.

"We really didn't mean to hide it from you." Fang Ci said with a guilty conscience, his tone adding three points of flattery and seven points of fawning: "Your Highness shoulders the heavy responsibility of the three armies, and the war is ahead. It's not worth distracting him. I will take care of the rest for you. Don't you still trust me?"

"Don't give me that!" the young man shouted, gritting his teeth. "You two! You're just ganging up on me again! What do you mean by worth it?! You're only going to find out after he dies from his injuries?!"

Fang Ci tried to smile and appease her: "You can't say that...Wen Congren has carefully calculated all of this——"

"Stop talking about that quack!" Fang Che suddenly lost his temper, furious, and interrupted her directly: "Jing Yuan should be kept as far away from that bastard as possible! Look at how many dangerous things that bastard Wen Congren has encouraged Jing Yuan to do!"

"Yes, yes, yes—" Fang Ci responded repeatedly, while putting his hand on the boy's shoulder: "A Che, can you calm down for a moment?"

"Calm down?!" Fang Che was furious. "Yanshi even replaced his heart meridians. Who knows what kind of aftereffects this will leave! Bastard! If I don't skin that Barbarian King alive, I'll spell my name Fang backwards!"

Fang Ci didn't dare to scold him, so he could only quietly remind him, "A Che, you promised the other day that you would never use forbidden techniques for revenge. How could you, the prince of the Southern Palace, go back on your word?"

The young man turned his head away, feigning indifference: "He's allowed not to lie to me, but I'm not allowed to lie to him! Sister never took me seriously anyway, so why should she care about me now?"

Fang Che's voice unconsciously lowered a few notches. "Besides... Ren Xuandu said that the Barbarian King's realm has fallen below the fourth rank. I don't even need a forbidden technique to kill him."

The look of trying to be tough but unable to hide the grievance made Fang Ci's heart soften, and she couldn't help but chuckle.

She reached out and took the boy's slightly cold hand, saying seriously, "How about this? From now on, if he encounters any danger, he must first report it to the prince. If he gets injured again in this unclear way, I'll take care of him for you..."

Fang Ci paused, his voice becoming softer. "If you're still worried, have your personal guards follow him every day until he recovers from his injuries."

Fang Che's lips curled slightly upon hearing this, his anger finally subsiding a bit, but he still said with a stern face, "Just ask Chenglie to go with him. For the next month... no, half a year! He's not allowed to leave Chenglie's sight for even a single step!"

Before he finished speaking, Han Chenglie came in.

Han Chenglie strode in with great momentum, bowed briefly to the two men, and then turned towards the palace and shouted, "Black Cavalry, assemble! Follow me to the city!"

Fang Che was stunned.

Fang Ci hurried forward and said, "Wait a minute, Chenglie, what's wrong? Calm down."

Han Chenglie was furious: "Shuaicheng won't let us pick up anyone! Xiao Jingxiu even beat up the fourth and sixth brothers!"

Fang Ci frowned slightly: "Qin Shu doesn't care?"

Han Chenglie laughed angrily: "Who cares! Just suppress us and turn a blind eye to Xiao Jingxiu!!"

It is everyone's consensus that Lord Xiao needs to recover from his injuries.

But as to where to recuperate, Shuai Cheng obviously has different opinions.

His Royal Highness Prince Xiang was well versed in the art of favoritism, and with a simple tactic of his hands, he blocked Han Chenglie tightly.

Qin Shu said lightly: "My brother is willing to take care of me, why are you all messing around here? Can't you tell the difference between close relatives and distant relatives?"

The word "outsider" silenced the taciturn General Han.

Han Chenglie was furious. He practically gnashed out his words through his teeth: "What a beast is Xiao Jingxiu! Who knows if he's planning to harm you! Qin Shu, on the other hand, only knows how to protect that bastard!"

Fang Che said without a word: "No need to mobilize the Black Cavalry. Chenglie, don't worry about this matter. Sister, I'm going to Shuaicheng."

Fang Ci sighed softly, "A Che."

The young man looked back, seething with anger: "Sister, you tolerate this?!"

Fang Ci raised his eyes and said softly, "Bring your sword."

Without saying a word, the young man took the sword and rushed out of the door.

Fang Ci quickly winked at Han Chenglie, "Watch him. If he starts beating Xiao Jing, don't let him hit you. No one else is allowed to get involved. Don't make a big fuss."

She hesitated and hesitated, and finally added: “Don’t beat Jamel Xiao to death.”

Han Chenglie nodded and quickly chased into the rain.

Raindrops were falling under the eaves, and Fang Ci watched the green shadow disappear into the depths of the mist. Suddenly, he remembered many years ago, when the lotus breeze in the back garden of the palace was warm, and the ten-year-old Fang Che and Xiao Jingxiu had an argument and pushed each other, and both fell into the clear pool.

Water splashed and lotus leaves fluttered.

The young man climbed up, soaking wet, his hair dripping with water and his clothes stained with mud, but he grinned and raised his hands high towards her: "Sister, I win!"

There is mud on the face and light in the eyes.

Fang Ci was sitting under the shade of the willow trees at that time, and suddenly she felt that this was how it should be. Her brother should always be so clear-headed.

If you are not involved in political schemes, you will not know the calamity of your fate, and you will not understand that the four words "Fiery Life Sealed Heaven" are more important than a thousand pounds.

I wish to be a humble guest in Wuling and live in a prosperous and peaceful time.

He spends his life fighting cocks and running dogs, unaware of the fate of heaven and earth.